Present methods of monitoring rechargeable batteries are cumbersome, requiring microprocessors, digital signalling and additional costs not necessarily required for a battery cycle counter. Many of the present battery conditioners available on the market that attempt to monitor certain battery parameters require external power sources and/or extra connections between the battery conditioner/charger and the rechargeable battery, further adding to the cost of the battery itself and the overall product. For example, extra connections, contacts, and tooling for their arrangement are required for serial or parallel data lines between the battery monitoring devices and batteries. Furthermore, charge/conditioners are not designed to detect when a battery has been "cycled." The market lacks a simple, low cost, robust, and reliable battery cycle counter.
A need for a cheap method of accurately tracking the number of times a rechargeable battery is cycled definitely exists. For instance, large municipal users of two-way portable radios frequently recharge batteries more than once a day. At that rate, the battery may fail before the battery life expectancy in terms of time. Thus, with a battery cycle counter, the user and manufacturer can determine more accurately the life of the battery in terms of actual usage. Therefore, a method of battery cycle counting without an undue expense added to the battery or battery pack would be desirable.